How Do I Get My Adopted Dog Qualified as a Therapy Dog and What Rights Does That Give Me?

Question

How do I get a recently adopted dog qualified as a therapy dog? I currently live in Suffolk County, New York. I would also like to know what rights and privileges I have as the owner of a therapy dog.

Answer

At the outset, it is important to note that rights afforded to people with service dogs, therapy dogs, and emotional support dogs differ.

For example, in NYS “therapy dog” is defined to include “any dog that is trained to aid the emotional and physical health of patients in hospitals, nursing homes, retirement homes and other settings and is actually used for such purpose, or any dog during the period such dog is being trained or bred for such purpose, and does not qualify under federal or state law or regulations as a service dog.” The law also provides that therapy dogs and service dogs may accompany victims of domestic violence at residential programs (with limited exceptions).

The NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets has issued guidance for handlers of therapy dogs and facilities that use therapy dogs. See: therapydogguidance.pdf (https://agriculture.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2020/03/therapydogguidance.pdf). This report discusses, among other things, guidance on certification. It states: “Dogs should also be registered with a therapy dog organization whose standards are consistent with these guidelines. Dogs registered with a recognized therapy dog organization should be issued some type of identification, tag, or accessory that indicates that they are a therapy dog.”

NYS law also provides that “Municipalities may exempt from their licensing fees any guide dog, hearing dog, service dog, war dog, working search dog, detection dog, police work dog or therapy dog. Each copy of any license for such dogs shall be conspicuously marked "Guide Dog", "Hearing Dog", "Service Dog", "Working Search Dog", "War Dog", "Detection Dog", "Police Work Dog", or "Therapy Dog", as may be appropriate, by the clerk or authorized dog control officer.”

“Emotional support animal” is not specifically defined under NYS law but people with a physical or mental health condition who need an emotional support animal (assistance animal) have protection under federal, state, and local laws, such as the federal Fair Housing Act. A letter from a health care professional should be helpful to prove such a need. A reasonable housing accommodation must be provided even when pets are not permitted in such housing. Until recently, the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) had guidelines regarding emotional support and service animals to help landlords and tenants understand their rights and responsibilities. The government withdrew these guidelines.

“Service dog” is defined in a few sections of NYS law. The definitions are similar. One such definition states that a “Service dog”
includes “any dog that has been or is being individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a
disability.” “Service animal” under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act definition includes “any dog that is individually
trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric,
intellectual, or other mental disability…The work or tasks performed by a service animal must be directly related to the
individual’s disability…”

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act and other laws, people have rights to enter public accommodations with their service animals (not just housing), although New York’s Human Rights Law may be interpreted to also allow people with emotional support animals this access. That is not clear. For further information, see: Service Animals (https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/publications/serviceanimals-english.pdf).